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Meulen, Adam Frans van der

(Encyclopedia)Meulen, Adam Frans van der äˈdäm fräns vän dĕr mölˈən [key], c.1632–1690, Flemish painter of battle scenes and portraits. He was invited to Paris c.1665 and accompanied Louis XIV on militar...

Saint-Cyr-l'École

(Encyclopedia)Saint-Cyr-l'École săN-sēr-lākôlˈ [key], town (1990 pop. 14,832), Yvelines dept., N central France. A school for the daughters of impoverished noblemen was founded there in 1685 by Louis XIV and ...

Saint-Jean-de-Luz

(Encyclopedia)Saint-Jean-de-Luz săN-zhäN-də-lüz [key], town (1990 pop. 13,181), Pyrénées-Atlantiques dept., SW France, in the Basque region (see Basques), on the Bay of Biscay. It is a beach resort with a cas...

Trianon

(Encyclopedia)Trianon trēänôNˈ [key], two small châteaux in the park of Versailles, Seine-et-Oise dept., N France. The Grand Trianon was built by J. H. Mansart in 1687 for Louis XIV; Napoleon I sometimes used ...

Jesuit Estates Act

(Encyclopedia)Jesuit Estates Act jĕzhˈəwĭt, jĕzˈ– [key], law adopted in 1888 by the Quebec legislature, partly to indemnify the Society of Jesus for Jesuit property confiscated by the British during the per...

Caylus, Marie Marguerite, comtesse de

(Encyclopedia)Caylus, Marie Marguerite, comtesse de kālüsˈ [key], 1673–1729, French writer and actress. A noted beauty and wit, she was lauded for her performance at Saint-Cyr in Racine's Esther. Her Souvenir...

minuet

(Encyclopedia)minuet mĭnyo͞oĕtˈ [key], French dance, originally from Poitou, introduced at the court of Louis XIV in 1650. It became popular during the 17th and 18th cent. In 3–4 meter and moderate tempo, the...

Ryswick, Treaty of

(Encyclopedia)Ryswick, Treaty of, 1697, the pact that ended the War of the Grand Alliance. Its signers were France on one side and England, Spain, and the Netherlands on the other. It was a setback for Louis XIV, w...

Chambord

(Encyclopedia)Chambord, château, park, and village (1993 est. pop. 200), all owned by the state, in Loir-et-Cher dept., N central France. The huge Renaissance château, built by Francis I and set in an immense par...

Norwich, city, United States

(Encyclopedia)Norwich nôrˈwĭch, –ĭch [key], industrial city (1990 pop. 37,391), SE Conn., seat of New London co., on hilly ground, where the Yantic and Shetucket form the Thames; settled 1659, inc. 1784, town...